British Wizarding Law Academy/Class 1
Political Parties are very hard to understand, and are often misunderstood or mixed up. To start off, we should talk about some basic vocabulary! *Politics: :#The activities associated with the governance of a country or other area, especially the debate or conflict among individuals or parties having or hoping to achieve power. :##Synonyms: government, affairs of state, public affairs; diplomacy :#The activities of governments concerning the political relations between countries. :#The academic study of government and the state. :##Synonyms: political science, civics, statecraft *Party :#A formally constituted political group, typically operating on a national basis, that contests elections and attempts to form or take part in a government. :##Synonyms: faction, political party, group, grouping, cabal, junta, bloc, camp, caucus It is important to understand exactly what a Political Party is. It's a simple concept that everyone ends up mixing up at some point or another. The best way to understand each Party is to compare and contrast using a Political Spectrum. There are a couple of different types of Political Spectrum's. The most common type is the Party Line. One type of Line! The Line displays the two sides of the Political Spectrum, the left and the right, as well as where each Political Party stands in accordance to the scale. With Independent as the dead center, each Political Party branches off in accordance to more liberal views, or more conservative views. If I were to say: "Pick a Party that is Extreme Left!" you might pick Communist or Socialist. If I say pick a party that is Liberal Left, you might pick Democrat or Progressive Democrat. Another type of Spectrum, and most proffered by politicians is the Spectrum graph. It displays the Left and Right sides, but gives us some new information about each Political Party. Left being more Liberal, and Right being more conservative is good information. It tells us a lot, but it doesn't separate each side even further. Obviously Republican and Fascist are very different, yet they are on the same side of the Line. The graph provides an Authoritarian and Libertarian division. So while Stalinism (A more Authoritarian party of Communism) is on a separate side as Fascism, they are both on the Authoritarian side, meaning they have more authority (more control). Libertarians believe in more liberty and a less government controlled environment. This also shows how one Political Party can have multiple aspects. For example, Communism is a Political Party that is as far left as possible. And while it normally is a Libertarian based government system, there are certain Communist Governments that are more author on the Authoritarian side of things. If I asked for a Political Party that was Extreme Left with more Libertarian ideals, the answer could be Socialism, Communism, and Anarchism. If I asked for a Political Party that is Conservative Right with Authoritarian ideals, you could put Republican, Conservative Republic, and even a small range of Nationalism. :"Nationalism tends to be much like Independents but with more Authoritarian ideals. What makes them different from other Political Parties is rather than disagreeing over Political Standpoints, Nationalists often show more favoritism to their country rather than to a particular Political Party." Another aspect of the Political Spectrum is it's range. Socialism is Extreme Left and is spread out over Authoritarian and Libertarian. But, as shown in Image 3, the Socialism box is spread out across the whole graph. It isn't a tiny dot focusing on an exact section. This shows that each political party has a variety of ideals, all revolving around the basic beliefs of the party. Lets say we have 2 Socialist Governments. One of those governments might be very controlling and more on the Authoritarianism side (unlikely but possible). The other Socialist government could be a more on the Libertarianism side. Both of Socialist governmentsm, but with a different set of ideals. One Socialist government could be a little further right than the other (Wouldn't be on the right side, just not as far left). This is comparing two Political Parties, Republicans and Democrats, and displaying how spread out each of the parties are. While the Republican Party leans more towards Authoritarian, Libertarianism still has some influence on the governmental system. And same with the Democratic Party. :If you are familiar with famous/infamous Muggle Politicians in the past, this chart may help you understand each Political Party a little better NOTE: I think it's important for people to understand, that your view of some of these Political Parties are based on what you know of them, and how they have worked out in the past. Example: USSR and Communism. It should be noted that the USSR became such an extreme Communist nation that Stalinism was created. Same with Nazi Germany and Fascism. Nazi Germany was nearly as Fascist as you could get, thus Nazism was created. Do not let history determine your opinions of these Political Parties. Make opinions after studying each one carefully. With that said, lets begin a detailed analysis of each Political Party! (We will start at Extreme Left on the Line, and work our way to the right) COMMUNISM In a perfect world, everyone would have food and shelter, and a true Utopian society would be devoid of sexism, racism and other forms of oppression. But for most of the world's population, this perfect society just isn't possible. Communism is one proposed solution to these problems. Communism is a basic concept, based on giving every single citizen the same rights as the other. This can be a very Authoritarian government, when the government takes away rights of certain people in order to put them on the same playing field as everyone else. The basic ideals are really to be more Libertarian, and make sure everyone has equal freedom in a variety of rights. Pure Communism or Full Communism is when the Government can simply abolish itself, and the society can live as a Utopian Society without a government. Full Communism has never been accomplished. SOCIALISM Cousin to Communism, Socialism is very similar. In general, models of socialism often include some form of co-operative management of economic affairs based on equal power relationships, and socialists generally oppose hierarchies of a non-technical nature. The belief that the community should run the economy as a whole. The term "Utopia" describes a perfect place or society, where everyone is equal socially, economically, and physically. The theory of socialism was created with the vision of a Utopian society in mind. Unlike Communism, there is no real consensus on how the ideal socialist society should function or what it would look like if it was accomplished. Dozens of forms of socialism exist, all with differing ideas about economic planning, community size and many other factors. Despite the variations in socialist ideals, every version advocates the benefits of cooperation among the people, steering clear of capitalism. SOCIAL DEMOCRACY A socialist system of government achieved by democratic means. Social democracy is the idea that the government needs to provide security and equality for its people and should actively reorder society in a way that is conducive to such developments, but that such changes should be brought about gradually, and done democratically. While social democrats belong firmly in the progressive side of Political Parties (as well as liberals - left), they reject the need to change society by means of warfare. In the end, Socialism and Social Democracy are trying to achieve the same thing, but they are different in terms of how they go about it. Social Democrats try to make the Utopian Society but in a Democratic manor - without taking and distributing rights, that is. GREENS (GREEN PARTY) With liberal ideals, the Green Party commit to environmentalism, non-violence, social justice, and grassroots organizing. Whether the issue is universal health care, corporate globalization, alternative energy, election reform or decent, living wages for workers, Greens will do everything to make sure the solution is environmentally friendly, anti-violent, and promotes free healthcare, free education, and want to put an end to drugs and poverty. While these are the goals of most Political Parties, the way the Green Party goes about it makes them unique among liberal parties. Democratic Party The closest liberal party to neutral, the Democratic Party is big on civil rights. Despite being born out of anti-federalist ideals, the Democratic Party has come to favor government regulation. The Democratic Party believes favors government handouts as they are often called. This is when the government gives money to unemployed, disabled, or temporarily ill people while they are out of work, or facing major economic problems. The Democratic Party believe it is the responsibility of government to care for all individuals, even if it means giving up some individual rights. They believe that the economy should be controlled by the government by means of guiding businesses and in the best interest of labor unions. While the Democratic Party tends to reduce and scale down the military and military funding, they are strong education supporters and believe that it should be a requirement to get at least a 12 year education. Independents Independents believe in non-party Politics, often taking views from multiple different parties and forming their own opinions. WIP